The ''Lausiac History'' ( grc-x-koine, Ἡ Λαυσαϊκή Ἱστορία, E Lavsaike Istoria) is a seminal work archiving the
Desert Fathers (early Christian monks who lived in the
Egyptian
desert) written in 419-420 by
Palladius of Galatia, at the request of
Lausus, chamberlain at the court of the
Byzantine Emperor Theodosius II.
[Introduction, in public domain]
Section source.
Originally written in
Greek, the ''Lausiac History'' was so popular it was soon translated into
Arabic,
Armenian,
Coptic
Coptic may refer to:
Afro-Asia
* Copts, an ethnoreligious group mainly in the area of modern Egypt but also in Sudan and Libya
* Coptic language, a Northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century
* Coptic alphabet ...
,
Geʽez,
Latin,
Syriac and
Sogdian.
History
The book was popular among monks all over the East, who appear to have added to it considerably in transcribing it. The first edition was a Latin version by
Gentian Hervetus. A shorter Greek text was published by
Johannes Meursius (Leyden, 1616), and a longer one by
Fronton du Duc, and a still more complete one by
J. Cotelerius. This longer version contains the text of Rufinus. Butler, Preuschen, and others think that the shorter text (of Meursius) is Palladius's authentic work, the longer version being interpolated.
Amélineau holds that the longer text is all Palladius's work, and that the first thirty-seven chapters (about the monks of
Lower Egypt
Lower Egypt ( ar, مصر السفلى '; ) is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically, ...
) are mainly an account of what the author saw and heard, though even here he has also used documents. But he thinks the second part (about
Upper Egypt) is merely a compilation from a Coptic or Greek document which Rufinus also used; so that Palladius's visit to Upper Egypt must be a literary fiction. But the shorter text itself exists in various forms. A Syrian monk,
Anan-Isho, living in the sixth-seventh centuries in Mesopotamia, translated the ''Lausiac History'' into Syriac with further interpolations. At one time the ''Lausiac History'' was considered a compilation of imaginary legends. Roman Catholic scholars at the beginning of the twentieth century argued that it was also a serious source on Egyptian monasticism.
Liturgical usage
In the
Eastern Orthodox Church (the
Byzantine Rite
The Byzantine Rite, also known as the Greek Rite or the Rite of Constantinople, identifies the wide range of cultural, liturgical, and canonical practices that developed in the Eastern Christianity, Eastern Christian Church of Constantinople.
Th ...
) the Lausiac History is read at
matins on the weekdays of
Great Lent
Great Lent, or the Great Fast, (Greek: Μεγάλη Τεσσαρακοστή or Μεγάλη Νηστεία, meaning "Great 40 Days," and "Great Fast," respectively) is the most important fasting season of the church year within many denominat ...
as two of the
patristic
Patristics or patrology is the study of the early Christian writers who are designated Church Fathers. The names derive from the combined forms of Latin ''pater'' and Greek ''patḗr'' (father). The period is generally considered to run from ...
readings, after the third
kathisma and after the third ode of the
canon.
"Archbishop Averky Liturgics — The Peculiarities of Daily Lenten Services — Lenten Matins", Retrieved 2011-08-03
An extract from the introduction
"In the fourth and fifth centuries of our era Egypt had come to be regarded with great reverence throughout Christendom as a Holy Land of piety.[
"Pilgrims came from all parts to visit the saints who lived there, and several wrote descriptions of what they saw and heard, which are among the most interesting documents of the early Church. Palestine was so near that it was usually included in their tour; the glamour of its sacred sites, which remains with us still when that of Egypt has faded into oblivion, was already potent. But Palestine was clearly second to Egypt in the affections of the pilgrims.
" sexpressed by ]Chrysostom
John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of ab ...
... Egypt ... was destined to be more fervent than any other, to have its towns and even its deserts peopled by armies of saints living the life of angels, and to boast the greatest, after the apostles, of all saints, the famous Antony.
"Palladius, ... made a pilgrimage to this holy land, like so many others, and stayed there many years. ... The character of the man stands out clearly in the History, He was sincere, simple-minded and not a little credulous. His deep religious fervour, of the ascetic type, needless to say, appears throughout the book."
People
The ''Lausiac History'' contains descriptions and narratives of various monks, abbots, and saints, including:
See also
* Desert Mothers
* '' Sayings of the Desert Fathers''
Bibliography
*
*Meyer, Robert T. ''Palladius: The Lausiac History''. ACW 34. New York: Newman Press, 1965; reprint: Paulist Press.
*Vivian, Tim. "Coptic Palladiana I: The Life of Pambo." ''Coptic Church Review'' 20, no. 3 (1999): 66–95.
*Vivian, Tim. "Coptic Palladiana II: The Life of Evagrius." ''Coptic Church Review'' 21, no. 1 (2000): 8–23.
*Vivian, Tim. "Coptic Palladiana III: The Life of Macarius of Egypt." ''Coptic Church Review'' 21, no. 3 (2000): 82–109.
*Vivian, Tim. "Coptic Palladiana V St. Macarius of Alexandria." ''Coptic Church Review'' 22, no. 1 (2001): 2–22.
References
External links
html
The Paradise Of the Holy Fathers: Volumes 1 & 2
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lausiac History
Byzantine Rite
Christian hagiography
5th-century Christian texts
Works by the Church Fathers
Byzantine literature